- Location
- South Florida
It is a power wire to a switch for a bilge pump and I like the way you are thinking John.
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Calling all total loss gurus, electricians, and electrical engineers
- Thread starter McDog
- Start date
It is a power wire to a switch for a bilge pump and I like the way you are thinking John.
- Location
- South Florida
I do but I'm at work. Plus the ignition is in a box at the moment because I tore my ski down for a complete makeover/rebuild.
ProSouth
Seriously, Don't be a dick.
- Location
- kawasakis suck
It’s the total loss. Ditch it.
Not here to help. Good luck.
Not here to help. Good luck.
- Location
- South Florida
Screw you. Move along.
Hi McDog
I also have had my carbon woes with my Freak, fortunately used to be a well paid electrical engineer , so will try to apply my mind
Did the mounting bolt where the burning occurred have an earth lead connected to it. (I ask this as only one out of two mounting points showed some burning..that's odd..If it did, its heating the bolt up due to a bad connection at that joint..either the surface between mounting lug and ebox is dirty, or the crimped lug has failed inside the lead..that happens a lot..For it to generate that amount of heat would mean there is also another problem with the other earth lead which goes direct from battery negative terminal to starter motor mount...test it under high current load....same issue at the lugs or the strands are broken inside the sheathing somewhere where it flexes a lot whilst riding.
Another question.....did you see smoking at that mounting point when the engine was been cranked over, (e.g. 150 + Amps drawn from the battery) or was it happening without engine running at all. (and no water flowing at all)...maybe a bit more detail here please.
Another angle .......the entire hull is carbon (highly conductive) and it has been earthed specifically at your ebox, (nowhere else in my mind) which in turn is earthed to the motor and battery.
So...as far as I am aware your battery positive leads are direct to solenoid and from there you send one to the bilge pump (via switch maybe ? or is the switch on the earth lead ) and probably another to Flame brain direct or via fuse. If no switch on positive lead to Bilge, the pump could be putting a voltage onto the hull where its mounted (i.e. faulty, wet inside) and current is making its way back to the battery via that mounting point and creating the heat.
Last thought....but left field completely....nothing to do with the battery circuits at all .....could be galvanic current flowing when you are riding (in salt water) and somehow this mounting point is the highest resistance in the whole current circuit therefore causing heat......I think you already replaced the aluminium tubes under the tray, which are destroyed by the galvanic effect of carbon/saltwater/aluminium, so now the pump nozzle or whole pump itself ( if not SS) becomes the preffered anode.....and the "problem " moves elsewhere....to the place where the hull meets its earth at the ebox.
my 2 cents
I also have had my carbon woes with my Freak, fortunately used to be a well paid electrical engineer , so will try to apply my mind
Did the mounting bolt where the burning occurred have an earth lead connected to it. (I ask this as only one out of two mounting points showed some burning..that's odd..If it did, its heating the bolt up due to a bad connection at that joint..either the surface between mounting lug and ebox is dirty, or the crimped lug has failed inside the lead..that happens a lot..For it to generate that amount of heat would mean there is also another problem with the other earth lead which goes direct from battery negative terminal to starter motor mount...test it under high current load....same issue at the lugs or the strands are broken inside the sheathing somewhere where it flexes a lot whilst riding.
Another question.....did you see smoking at that mounting point when the engine was been cranked over, (e.g. 150 + Amps drawn from the battery) or was it happening without engine running at all. (and no water flowing at all)...maybe a bit more detail here please.
Another angle .......the entire hull is carbon (highly conductive) and it has been earthed specifically at your ebox, (nowhere else in my mind) which in turn is earthed to the motor and battery.
So...as far as I am aware your battery positive leads are direct to solenoid and from there you send one to the bilge pump (via switch maybe ? or is the switch on the earth lead ) and probably another to Flame brain direct or via fuse. If no switch on positive lead to Bilge, the pump could be putting a voltage onto the hull where its mounted (i.e. faulty, wet inside) and current is making its way back to the battery via that mounting point and creating the heat.
Last thought....but left field completely....nothing to do with the battery circuits at all .....could be galvanic current flowing when you are riding (in salt water) and somehow this mounting point is the highest resistance in the whole current circuit therefore causing heat......I think you already replaced the aluminium tubes under the tray, which are destroyed by the galvanic effect of carbon/saltwater/aluminium, so now the pump nozzle or whole pump itself ( if not SS) becomes the preffered anode.....and the "problem " moves elsewhere....to the place where the hull meets its earth at the ebox.
my 2 cents
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- Location
- South Florida
Thank you so much @Freakie for this input. Your advice is appreciated. I have filled in answers to your questions above inside the quote.
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Yami-Rider
TigerCraft FV-PRO
- Location
- Texoma
A positive cable or battery post must have been touching the hull somewhere and it was shorting to ground at the ebox, check all your battery cables/posts, got to be some damaged wires somewhere.
McDog. I got your feedback tks.....so one of the three mount points on the ebox to hull had a resistance much lower than the other two for a random reason, but enough resistance to generate significant heat once a high enough current somehow passed through that junction for some reason...........current supplied by the lithium battery whilst the ski was not running and bilge switch on the positive lead definitely in the off position......battery was dead when you went to check on the ski after kids mentioned smoke......so this is actually your lucky day.......apologies...just looking at the up side for a moment.....
The only logical conclusion imho is that somehow a positive connection from the battery or leads from it came into direct contact with the hull somewhere.. that would cause the current to flow in the manner required.so...is the positive lead very well protected between battery and solenoid.......was the hood in position or upside down venting the engine bay......touching battery ?.....did the kids perhaps try to crank the ski for a long period and the solenoid welded in closed position......similar...did they switch bilge on and leave it running......sorry....out of fresh ideas at this point. Will sleep on it.
The only logical conclusion imho is that somehow a positive connection from the battery or leads from it came into direct contact with the hull somewhere.. that would cause the current to flow in the manner required.so...is the positive lead very well protected between battery and solenoid.......was the hood in position or upside down venting the engine bay......touching battery ?.....did the kids perhaps try to crank the ski for a long period and the solenoid welded in closed position......similar...did they switch bilge on and leave it running......sorry....out of fresh ideas at this point. Will sleep on it.
- Location
- South Florida
Hood was on normal position and nothing touching battery. I seriously doubt the kids tried to start the ski. But....my son was the last one to ride ski so maybe bilge left on? But I doubt that is the culprit because the battery had already died once and been recharged that day. This was the first time the battery had EVER died on me and I suspected it was failing as it is 4 years old. The smoke and burning was after battery had been recharged and my son had ridden the ski for another hour or so before we brought it out of the water.
Half flip95
Formerly pondracer95
- Location
- Lake Havasu City AZ
if it works correctly but is smoking and burning stuff up, id say bad connections or intermittent fault
take the ebox cover off and put a nice coat of glyptal over everything.
take the ebox cover off and put a nice coat of glyptal over everything.
- Location
- sask, canada
@McDog did you ever figure this out? My total loss electronics just did this to me yesterday. Had been working flawlessly for the longest time, but after a quick 10 min ride yesterday I stopped to fuel up and after fueling up, I noticed smoke coming from the electronics. Had to run and grab a screw driver to quickly disconnect the battery. Took the electronics apart at home and it was shorting at one of the mounting bolts for the starter solenoid. My solenoid crapped out on me a few weeks ago and in a pinch I bought a Cole Hersee universal one, I'm thinking that must be where the problem is because everything else looks perfect.
- Location
- South Florida
Not yet. Been working on other parts of rebuild.
- Location
- sask, canada
To follow up, my issue was the starter solenoid, as I suspected.
ProSouth
Seriously, Don't be a dick.
- Location
- kawasakis suck
- Location
- South Florida
Dont make me be a dick.
ProSouth
Seriously, Don't be a dick.
- Location
- kawasakis suck
Does this include the ban hammer? Asking for a research paper
- Location
- South Florida
No, I'll just change your screen name to something more fitting.
- Location
- South Florida
So I sat down with it at the kitchen table. I had an ocd OEM ignition and flame instructions next to me. I went through it three times and confirmed that everything is perfect. The bilge had it's own fuse but I went ahead and added another inside the ebox. I didnt get the ohmmeter out but I just went ahead and replaced the OEM relay as it is the only thing I can think of besides that I had the extra ground wire going to the battery instead of the engine which I'm not doing again.